This invention relates to novel zwitterion polygalactomannan ether derivatives and to a method for their preparation. It also relates to modified polygalactomannan ether derivatives which contain, in addition to the novel zwitterion substituent groups, other non-ionic, anionic, cationic, or cationogenic substituent groups and to a method for their preparation.
As used herein, the term "zwitterion polygalactomannan ether derivatives" includes amphoteric polygalactomannan ether derivatives wherein the anionic and cationic or cationogenic substituent groups are both bonded to the same reaction site on the polygalactomannan molecule through a zwitterion substituent group. The term "cationogenic" refers to non-ionic substituents capable of forming cations, e.g. diethylaminoethyl ether substituents.
Polygalactomannan ether derivatives are well-known in the art and useful in the petroleum industry as oil well drilling muds and oil well fracturing aids, in the textile industry for sizing, printing and finishing operations, and in the paper industry as beater additives and sizing and coating agents. Typical derivatives may contain non-ionic groups, such as C.sub.3 -C.sub.8 -hydroxyalkyl groups or allyl groups, anionic groups, such as carboxyalkyl groups or 2-hydroxy-3-sulfopropyl groups; cationic groups, such as quaternary or tertiary amine groups; and mixed ether groups, such as carboxyalkyl and hydroxyalkyl groups.
It is an object of this invention to provide novel zwitterion polygalactomannan ether derivatives and modified zwitterion polygalactomannan ether derivatives which will be useful in the paper industry as beater additivers, sizing and coating agents, and pigment retention aids, as in well as the textile and petroleum industries.